Baked Honey Custard

This baked honey custard is essentially ice cream, only in a luscious soft-set form that can be enjoyed warm (I love!) or chilled from the fridge. It’s delightful on its own, and equally delicious topped with some stewed fruit if you have some nice frozen summer berries still stashed away in the freezer.

You could use half cream and half milk for a less rich custard, and you can also play with the eggs- sometimes I use 6 whole eggs, sometimes I do 6 yolks only for what is essentially the custard base for creme brûlée… you should play with the recipe below and make it your own! Less whites = a softer, more luscious texture. More whites = a firmer texture.

Use the best quality ingredients you can, for the most nourishing baked custard. 

A note on nutmeg: buying whole nutmeg and using a microplane grater is the way to go. Pre-ground nutmeg is rather lack-luster and not worth adding in my opinion. 

Ingredients:

-2 cups heavy cream

-3 whole eggs, + 3 egg yolks 

-1/4 cup honey

-2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

-couple pinches sea salt

-a few shavings of fresh nutmeg 

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees, and get a large kettle of water on to boil.

   
   

2. In a medium sauce pan, heat cream and honey just until warm. You should be able to hold a finger in the mixture and not burn yourself. Set aside.

   
   

3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the whole eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and salt. Use an old-fashioned egg beater or a wire whisk to combine, then pour in the warm cream and honey mixture. Whisk until smooth.

   
   

4. Place a 2 or 3 quart baking dish with sides at least 4” tall inside a larger roasting pan. Pour custard mixture into the baking dish, then carefully pour your hot water from the kettle into the roasting pan, until water comes up about halfway along the sides of the baking dish. I attached a picture below of what I use for the hot water bath.

5. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes, then check for doneness. The custard will have a slight “wobble” in the center, with the edges looking more firm, when it is done. The custard is done when a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Try not to over-bake the custard (the water bath will help prevent this!) I err on the side of slightly underdone, when about a 1” diameter of the center of the custard still has a bit of jiggle if I carefully jiggle it (not easy to do inside the water bath, but we persevere)

   
   

6. Let custard sit at room temperature for at least 10 minutes before serving. Can be served warm, at room temperature, or chilled.